Nuno rues Telles red as Porto retain hope

Porto coach Nuno Espirito Santo lamented the red card shown to Alex Telles as he insisted his team can reach the Champions League quarterfinals despite its loss to Juventus.

Nuno Espirito Santo felt Alex Telles was perhaps unfortunate to be shown red by referee Felix Brych after two poor tackles.

Porto coach Nuno Espirito Santo lamented the red card shown to Alex Telles as he insisted his team can reach the Champions League quarterfinals despite its loss to Juventus.

Telles received two yellow cards in the space of as many minutes to be sent off in the first half of the last-16 first leg at the Estadio do Dragao on Wednesday.

Marko Pjaca and Dani Alves then struck in the second half to seal a 2-0 away win for Juve, putting them in complete control of the tie.

Nuno felt Telles was perhaps unfortunate to be shown red by referee Felix Brych after two poor tackles.

"In the Champions League, the referee could've made a different decision," he told a news conference.

"But this will help us grow as a team."

Despite the two-goal deficit, Nuno remains upbeat about Porto's chances of reaching the quarter-finals with a win in Turin on March 14.

"To avoid being knocked out now will be difficult but nothing is decided yet," Nuno said.